New_York_General_Assembly

New York General Assembly

New York General Assembly

House of Assembly of New York, 1683-1775

For the modern legislature, see New York State Assembly.

The General Assembly of New York, commonly known internationally as the New York General Assembly, and domestically simply as General Assembly, was the supreme legislative body of the Province of New York during its period of proprietal colonialship and the legislative body of the Province during its period as a crown colony. It was the representative governing body in New York until April 3, 1775, when the Assembly disbanded after the outbreak of the Revolutionary War.[1]

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Background

The New York General Assembly was first convened on October 17, 1683, during the governorship of Thomas Dongan, 2nd Earl of Limerick, which passed an act entitled "A Charter of Liberties" that decreed that the supreme legislative power under the Duke of York (later King James II) shall reside in a governor, council, and the people convened in general assembly; conferred upon the members of the assembly rights and privileges making them a body coequal to and independent of the English Parliament; established town, county, and general courts of justice; solemnly proclaimed the right of religious liberty; and passed acts enunciating certain constitutional liberties, e.g. taxes could be levied only by the people met in general assembly; right of suffrage; and no martial law or quartering of the soldiers without the consent of the inhabitants.[2]

The Assembly grew to twenty-seven members,[lower-alpha 1] elected by voice vote by the people once every seven years and the districts they represented. The representatives terms were originally at the will of the governor and new elections were ordered as it suited his interests. A law was passed that limited member's terms to three years, but it was annulled by King George III. The Septennial Act was passed in 1743, and remained in force till the revolution.[4]

The General Assembly elected a speaker from their own ranks, chose their own clerk, and published their own journal. The Assembly had the sole right of originating all laws granting appropriations of money, and, during Governor William Cosby's administration, which was defined by political struggles and is known as one of the most oppressive royal placeholders, they withheld his compensation in an attempt to bring him closer to their desires.[4] Reportedly, "these quarrels had considerably subsided before the revolution; but they doubtless had an influence beneficial to liberty, by introducing political discussions, and imparting a knowledge of the tendencies of irresponsible power."[4]

The General Assembly continued until May 1775. Among its last acts was the adoption of petitions to the king and Parliament of Great Britain, in which, while they "professed a warm attachment to the royal person and government, they solemnly protested against the aggressions that had for years been gaining upon the rights of the people, and expressed, quite as strongly as was then avowed by the patriots of the day, the sentiments advocated in the revolution."[4]

General Assembly

Districts

Representatives

The following were elected as members of the General Assembly.[lower-alpha 5][4][9]

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References

Notes
  1. By 1775, thirty-nine Assemblymen represented sixteen districts made up of Counties and Manors.[3]
  2. Van Cortlandt Manor was originally a 86,000-acre (35,000 ha) tract granted as a Patent to Stephanus Van Cortlandt in 1697 by King William III, stretching from the Hudson River on the west to the first boundary line between the Province of New York and the Colony of Connecticut, on the east, twenty English miles in length by ten in width, in shape nearly a rectangular parallelogram, forming, "The Manor of Cortlandt."[5]
  3. Livingston Manor was a 160,000 acre (650 square kilometres (250 sq mi)) tract of land granted to Robert Livingston the Elder and confirmed by royal charter of George I of Great Britain in 1715, creating the manor and lordship of Livingston.[6] The original patent was obtained in July 1686.[7]
  4. The Manor of Rensselaerwyck was, first, a Dutch patroonship and, later, an English manor. The estate was originally deeded by the Dutch West India Company to merchant Kiliaen van Rensselaer in 1630. Rensselaerswyck extended for miles on each side of the Hudson River near present-day Albany. It included most of what are now the present New York counties of Albany and Rensselaer, as well as parts of Columbia and Greene counties.[8]
  5. No journals or records of names of members of general assembly, between 1683 and 1691, are preserved. The duration of office of members, previous to 1743, was unlimited and dependent upon the will of the governor; and this power of convening, proroguing and dissolving the assembly was frequently exercised to procure a compliance with the wishes of the executive.[4]
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